Frici Papa Budapest: Hungarian Food and the Beef Stew We Would Return For

Frici Papa in Budapest is a place we would return to for one particular dish: beef pörkölt in red-wine sauce with nokedli. We ate here on our first evening in the city, sharing goulash soup before working through three Hungarian main courses. The beef, with its dark sauce and noticeable garlic, was the plate that stayed with us.

We had wanted an informal introduction to Hungarian home-style cooking, with a local beer alongside. Frici Papa gave us that: checked tablecloths, high ceilings, a table on the mezzanine and enough food that dessert never happened.

For the rest of our stops, see our guide to where to eat in Budapest.

An old-fashioned dining room on Király utca

The full name on the sign is Frici Papa Kifőzdéje. According to the restaurant’s own account, it opened in spring 1997, combining home-style cooking with a restaurant setting.

What caught our attention inside was the high, arched ceiling, the checked tablecloths and the large picture covering the wall. We went upstairs to the mezzanine and sat overlooking the dining room below. It was unpretentious and old-fashioned in a way we liked.

Service moved a little slowly. From what we could see, a small number of young staff were looking after the tables. We would choose it for a meal with time to spare.

What we ate at Frici Papa

Our order was a goulash soup, beef in red-wine sauce, pork with potatoes and chicken in paprika sauce. We also shared kovászos uborka, cucumber pickles. The long Hungarian names looked less daunting once the dishes arrived.

Gulyásleves: goulash soup to share

The goulash arrived in a pot with two red handles. We could see pieces of meat and potato in the soup, and shared it as our first taste of the meal.

For English-speaking visitors, the distinction is useful: this was goulash soup, while the beef pörkölt that followed was a separate dish with a much thicker sauce. Our Hungarian food guide explains those menu names in more detail.

Red-wine beef pörkölt with nokedli: our favorite

Vörösboros marhapörkölt nokedlivel was the most successful dish on the table for us. Pieces of beef sat in a dark sauce, with nokedli gathered on one side of the plate. We could taste the garlic, and liked the dish enough to say we would come back for this alone.

Nokedli are small, irregular dumplings. At first glance they reminded us of something between little pieces of pasta and dumpling dough. They came with both our beef and chicken dishes; the pork had potatoes instead. When ordering, make sure you specify the side you want.

Brassói aprópecsenye: pork and potatoes

Our second favorite was Brassói aprópecsenye, served as pieces of pork over potatoes. After the beef, this would be our next order. It is worth recognizing the name if you are choosing between the main dishes: the version we ate contained pork.

Chicken paprikash with nokedli

Paprikás csirkemell nokedlivel was chicken breast in a creamy, orange-tinged paprika sauce, again served with nokedli. We enjoyed this too, although in our own ranking it came after the beef and the pork.

Soproni beer and an emphatic finish with Unicum

Across the meal, we drank four 50 cl Soproni Ászok beers. This table was our first encounter with Hungarian beer on the trip.

At the end, we tried Unicum, the Hungarian herbal liqueur. Its flavor reminded us of something between a licorice drink and Jägermeister. The bitterness lingered in our mouth and throat, and was so forceful that it almost wiped away the flavors of the food we had just eaten.

There was no room for dessert. We saw chestnut purée, Somlói galuska and several palacsinta options on the menu, but did not try any of them. Those will have to wait for another visit.

Prices and value: what our visit records show

We paid for our meal in September 2026. Our recollection of the overall bill works out to roughly US$71–78 using the exchange rate recorded in our trip notes. This is an approximate remembered total, not a receipt-confirmed amount or a per-person price.

The beer prices are more specific: the menu video we recorded showed a 50 cl Soproni Ászok at 1,299 HUF and a 30 cl serving at 999 HUF. Four large beers therefore came to 5,196 HUF at those listed prices.

September 2026 menu item	HUF	Approx. USD at our recorded rate
Soproni Ászok, 50 cl	1,299	$4.01
Soproni Ászok, 30 cl	999	$3.08
Four 50 cl beers	5,196	$16.02

The historical conversions use 1 USD = 324.30 HUF, the September 29, 2026 rate recorded in our source notes. Menu prices and exchange rates change; see the restaurant’s current menu before a new visit.

What we can say without reconstructing the bill is that we finished very full. For us, the strongest reason to return was the beef and nokedli, rather than a claim that every dish was equally memorable.

What we would order again

If choosing just one plate, we would order the red-wine beef pörkölt with nokedli. We would return for that dish alone. Our second choice would be the Brassói pork and potatoes.

If you want to try several Hungarian dishes at one table, our shared-soup approach worked well. Leave some room at the beginning if dessert matters to you; by the end of our mains, it was no longer an option.

Our verdict

Frici Papa suited the kind of first-night dinner we wanted: informal surroundings, a few Hungarian home-style dishes and local beer. The slower service is part of our visit notes, but the red-wine beef is the reason the restaurant stayed on our return list.

Where is Frici Papa?

Frici Papa Kifőzdéje
Király utca 55, 1077 Budapest, Hungary.
Telephone: +36 1 351 0197.

Directions on Google Maps · Official website

Check current opening hours, table availability and the menu with the restaurant before you go.

Frequently asked questions

What should you order at Frici Papa?

Our favorite was the red-wine beef pörkölt with nokedli. The pork-and-potato Brassói aprópecsenye was our second choice.

Is the goulash the same as the beef stew?

No. On our table, gulyásleves was the soup served in a red-handled pot. The red-wine beef pörkölt was a separate main dish with a thick sauce and nokedli.

Do the main courses come with nokedli?

We ordered our beef and chicken with nokedli, while the pork came with potatoes. Specify the side when ordering, as the menu allows separate side choices.

Did we try the desserts?

No. We saw several on the menu but were too full after dinner to order them.

Is Frici Papa suitable for a quick meal?

Service was a little slow during our visit. We would allow time to sit down and eat rather than plan it immediately before a fixed appointment.

Explore more of Budapest and Hungarian food

Compare other soup stops in Where to Eat Goulash in Budapest: 9 Places to Try, including portion sizes and dated menu prices.

• Where to Eat in Budapest: Our Tried-and-Tested Food Guide — nine stops for meals, street food, coffee and market shopping.
• What to Eat in Hungary: A Hungarian Food Guide — dishes and menu names, from goulash and pörkölt to lángos and chimney cake.